Facebook to Battle Snapchat with “Slingshot” App

Facebook may take another poke at Snapchat later this month with a new ephemeral messaging service, The Financial Times reports. Mark Zuckerberg is reportedly supervising development of the app, codenamed “Slingshot,” revealing that the Facebook CEO’s obsession with Snapchat hasn’t subsided.

Like Snapchat, Facebook’s new app will reportedly offer the ability send self-destructing photo and video messages. The service will also be extremely easy to use, requiring just a few taps to send off a selfie. Zuckerberg famously tried to take on Snapchat with Poke, an app he later called “a joke” and which the company apparently whipped up in less than a day. Slingshot appears to be a much more serious effort, especially if Creative Labs, the team behind Facebook’s Paper app, is leading the charge this time as well.

Facebook clearly sees Snapchat as a threat, especially after the company turned down a $3 billion buyout offer last year. Zuckerberg turned around to buy WhatsApp for $19 billion, but Snapchat still represents a challenge to his social dominance, particularly as teenagers flock to its services over Facebook. It’s unclear whether “Slingshot” will be able to win back younger users, but we’re excited to see what the company comes up with if these rumors prove true.